Shane van Gisbergen defends back-to-back pole as Connor Zilisch struggles to catch up at Sonoma

Following a dominating run and an electrifying victory in Chicago last Saturday, Cup Series driver Shane van Gisbergen arrived at Sonoma Raceway and proved once again that he is unmatched on street courses. The Auckland native won the pole for this week’s Xfinity race at the 2.52-mile road course.

Starting the Pit Boss/FoodMaxx 250 alongside Shane van Gisbergen on Row 1 will be his JR Motorsports teammate Connor Zilisch. Notably, the same two drivers rounded up the front row for last week’s race at the Chicago Street Course, which van Gisbergen also started from the pole.

Journalist Jonathan Howard dropped the news through a post on X (formerly Twitter). He wrote,

“SVG on pole for the second week in a row. Will battle Zilisch in Sonoma. Full qualifying results/starting lineup for the Xfinity Series.”

Gisbergen also happens to be the defending winner of the Xfinity Series race at Sonoma. In an interview (quoted by Motorsport), the former Supercars icon admitted that the track has changed a lot since 2024. It's hotter than last year, which means the track will be slippery this time.

“At Chicago, they weren't too different but compared to what I had here last year, they are quite a bit different,” said Shane van Gisbergen. “Just trying to get it a bit centered but I feel good.”

The action will begin 4:30 pm ET onwards on CW. Fans can watch the 79-lap event live or listen to its exclusive radio coverage on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

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Connor Zilisch fires shots at Shane van Gisbergen ahead of their Sonoma “showdown”

After Shane van Gisbergen won his second consecutive pole in two weeks at Sonoma, NASCAR Xfinity on X wrote,

“Another @shanevg97 and @ConnorZilisch road course showdown tomorrow? The @JRMotorsports teammates will start on the front row together at @RaceSonoma!”

Connor Zilisch re-shared the post with the following caption:

“Comin for ya mate @shanevg97 😀”

One could say that this is exactly what a healthy rivalry between teammates looks like. Notably, Gisbergen hasn’t responded to Zilisch’s challenge. His No. 9 Quad Lock Chevy is the only car that cranked up a speed of over 95 miles per hour. Sam Mayer, Jesse Love, and William Sawalich rounded up the top five in qualifying.

Shane van Gisbergen currently drives the No. 88 car for Trackhouse Racing full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series. 2025 marks his maiden year in the series, and he has two wins to his name already, besides a pair of top fives and three top-10s.

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Edited by Pratham K Sharma